Mrs May continued that the Paris Agreement provides "the right global framework for protecting the prosperity and security of future generations, while keeping energy affordable and secure for our citizens and businesses", a Downing Street spokesperson said.

The US president, who had pledged to quit the deal during last year's election campaign, said he will be seeking a better deal for US workers.

He warned against making a fuss over the US exit from the Paris deal and urged to establish conditions for joint work, reportsSputnik news agency.

After Trump announced that the USA would begin its exit, he called the agreement "a massive redistribution of United States wealth to other countries".

Referring to Trump's idea of redrawing the 2015 accord, he said, in the French version, "we will not in any way renegotiate an agreement that is less ambitious" than the present one.

Mr Trump argued that the USA withdrawal made economic sense and would have a minimal impact on the environment, but he did not explicitly deny that carbon emissions from human activity were causing climate change.

Japan and the United Kingdom, two key strategic security allies of Washington, notably stood back from the criticism of Mr Trump, arguing that it was a decision for the USA administration.

Mayor of Los Angeles Eric Garcetti announced on Thursday that he was proud to continue to adopt goals of the Paris Agreement with 60 fellow mayors, who are committed to the Mayors National Climate Action Agenda (MNCAA).

The EU's commissioner for climate action and energy, Miguel Arias Cañete, said the climate accord would continue and that it would be global leaders who would fill the void left by the U.S. departure from the deal. Knowing the good work that we and countless others around the world are doing, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about our planet's future.

But hang on, there is one poll that might give Mr Trump reason to think he's onto a victor: while Americans believe climate change is happening, many of them don't believe it will happen to them.